Signal person Chris Delvecchio, of Bay Crane, directs the crane operator while errecting a wall at what will become The Shops at Marcus Dairy in Danbury, Conn., on Tuesday, May 29, 2012.
Photo: Jason Rearick

Signal person John Zils, with Bay Crane, second from left, guides a...

From left, Sean Marcus, Michael Marcus and Mayor Mark Boughton chat during the tilt-up ceremony at what will become The Shops at Marcus Dairy in Danbury, Conn., on Tuesday, May 29, 2012.
Photo: Jason Rearick

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DANBURY -- Final exterior walls are being hoisted into place this week at The Shops at Marcus Dairy, a new retail center near the Danbury Fair mall.

The first tenant could open its doors by Thanksgiving.

Michael Marcus, one of the principals who owns the property, said Panera Bread is hoping to open in the center sometime in late fall.

The center's remaining spaces, which includes two large buildings, are either under negotiations or have letters of intent signed by interested retailers, he said.

"Retailers are really anxious to be here," Marcus said. "Danbury is a great place to do business."

Whole Foods, Eastern Mountain Sports and Petco also plan to open retail stores at the center, developers said.

The majority of the stores, Marcus said, hope to open next spring.

When Jack Marcus purchased the property for his dairy business in 1947, he said it included an old house and vacant land. In the late 1950s, well before the nearby mall had been built, a friend told Marcus to hold onto the property because it was going to be a hot spot in the city.

"I listened to him, and he was right," Marcus said.

Marcus was on hand Tuesday to watch as some of the walls of the shopping center were lifted into place.

Mayor Mark Boughton, who watched Tuesday's progress, said Jack Marcus is one of the men who helped to build Danbury into the city it is today.

"It's a testament to the local economy that Danbury can support this kind of development," Boughton said. "Northern Fairfield County is one of the few areas of the state that are doing well."

While the city has recovered more than 62 percent of the jobs lost during the recession, Boughton said, several businesses have closed, including RR Donnelley, which expects to close its plant and lay off 150 workers this summer.

Boughton said the plant's closing, however, had more to do with changes in the printing industry than the local economy.

The Shops at Marcus Dairy, Boughton said, will bring with it hundreds of full- and part-time jobs, as well as property tax revenue.